Posts Tagged 'shipwrecks'

Did a safe with gold go down on the Mississippi River steamer Sultana? Probably, but unfortunately we may never know. She is barely a footnote in American history, but we do know that her destruction cost more lives than the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The mighty Mississippi later changed its path and there is evidence that the wreck is now buried under a farmer’s soybean field, two miles from the river’s present course. If you are reading ...

Today’s Shipwrecks™ list includes a Spanish frigate that had carried a shipment of silver coins; an English warship who’s guns were salvaged; a U.S. steamer that had been captured, used and scuttled by the Confederates; and a Japanese transport that went down with 2,669 people. The important question for this day is “did a ton of gold go down with the SS Colin?” If you are reading this in a post, go to http://shipwrecks.com/shipwrecks-of-april-26/ to ...

Have you ever heard of lead silver bullion? It is sometimes called base bullion and is one step in the refining process of first concentrating then removing silver that has been mined with lead. The percentage of silver in base bullion can be as low as 1 or 2 percent but can be well over 50%. Thirteen thousand bars of it went down in the SS Ballarat in 1917. If you are reading this in a post, go to

Some of the wrecks listed in this edition of Today’s Shipwrecks™ have been found, at least one was raised, but others are still undiscovered. What does it actually mean when reports say a ship was driven ashore? That is important because there are several ships on today’s list, which probably carried valuable merchandise and/or money. Can you guess which? If you are reading this in a post, go to http://shipwrecks.com/shipwrecks-of-april-24/ to access the list and ...

Among the numerous vessels lost on April 23 were brigs, ships and barks. They were French, Norwegian, British, American, Australian, German, and Russian. One, yet to be discovered, German submarine, carried a cargo of gold bars. Always see Shipwrecks.com for more information.

Today’s Shipwrecks™

April 23

compiled and edited by Dr. E. Lee Spence

1806: The Cyrus, Captain Horton, bound from Havana to Philadelphia, was lost April ...

The April 22 list of Today’s Shipwrecks™ includes everything from British warships and merchant vessels lost during the age of sail to 19th and 20th century steamers. But the mystery of the day is, what really went down on the Amerika in 1943? Was it gold and silver? Read more on www.Shipwrecks.com

The April 21 post for Today’s Shipwrecks™ includes a selection of wrecks from the 18th through the 20th century in places as diverse as the Atlantic, the Great Lakes, and the North Sea. They include everything from Spanish merchant ships to British armed schooners and brigs, to German torpedo boats and submarines.

Today’s Shipwrecks™ range from Spanish lost in the Bahamas in 1623, to an armed schooner lost by pilot error in 1808, and multiple U.S. navy ships being burned at the Norfolk Navy Yard in 1861, as well as wrecks from other time periods at a wide range of locations. The question for this day is — did the freighter Paul Hamilton have gold on her when she was sunk in 1944?

A boat, bound across the Mediterranean from Misrata, Libya to Europe with 500± illegal immigrants crammed on it, caught fire, capsized and sank on Thursday October 3, 2013. The wreck took place in less than 150′ of water about 600 yards off the Italian island of Lampedusa between Tunisia and Sicily.

The boat had around 500 people aboard, only 155 were saved, making a death toll of about 345. The recovered victims included 210 ...

Five fishing vessels with a total of 171 people aboard were caught in Typhoon Wutip that swept across the waters of the South China Sea on Sunday, September 29, 2013, packing winds of up to 90 miles per hour. Three of the ships with a total of 88 fishermen, all from China’s Guangdong Province, sank in a lagoon near Shanhu Dao in the Xisha Islands (also called Pattle Island, Paracel Islands).

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